Reasons to Remember
by IneffablePassion
Summary: Nao returns to Duel Academia for her second year with the burden of her family status behind her. Revelations occur when she and the Pro Duelist Ed Phoenix fatefully meet for the first time, or so she thought it was. Nao is gradually drawn towards Ed, while he is determined to claim her back, but a new enemy and a certain accident conflict against the past that was once true.
1. Temperance From Death

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!GX except for Fukugawa Nao. All Naturia Synchro Monsters are changed to Ritual Monsters and Tuner Monsters are converted to regular Effect Monsters. Credits go to Takahashi Kazuki and Director Tsuji Hatsuki.

* * *

**Chapter 1**

**Temperance in Death**

Fifteen-year-old Fukugawa Nao leisurely kicked her legs in the car seat while burying her nose into the October edition of Monthly Duel as Mimura Koichi drove her to the harbour. As a second-year student of Duel Academia, she was going to be an upperclassman to first-year students, the majority being the same age, if not older.

"Tell me, Koichi, where do my parents have an appointment that is so urgent?" she asked without taking her eyes off the page before turning it.

"At the hospital, young miss," he answered.

"The hospital? Is my father or mother ill?"

"In all honesty, young miss, Master and Madam Fukugawa wouldn't elaborate to anyone about this. Forgive me for my lack of assistance."

"Well, as long as my parents are in good health, then I suppose there is nothing serious to worry about."

Nao turned another page and her violet eyes stopped at a particular duelist's profile. The nobleman of the Pro-Dueling World League, Ed Phoenix, was reported to be attending to Duel Academia as a first-year student. The article processed in her mind clearly, but for some strange reason, she wasn't very astonished. There was something about his sapphire eyes and confident smile that made her try to think, but she couldn't. As a result of a struggle to train her thought, a headache rifted through her temple as she held it in her hand.

"Young miss?" Koichi worriedly asked.

The ache stopped as quickly as it came, "Yes, Koichi?" she tilted her head at him. He cleared his throat and told her that they arrived.

Since Nao had left most of her belongings in the dorm, she only had a knapsack with the Monthly Duel in her possession. "Thank you, Koichi. I shall continue to communicate with you and my parents this year like the previous."

Her driver bowed and she ran off to the ferry to check in. With an unreadable expression on his face, he watched her board the boat and left when it departed. He was ordered to drive back to the hospital after dropping her off, where her parents were going to be. If he was given such a command, then there must be something urgent.

As the boat steered to the island, she continued to read the entire magazine to pass the time. Nao turned another page and spotted Marufuji Ryō's name in a headline that deserved him praise: **Recent Graduate Kaiser Marufuji Ryō makes a strong name in the World League**. She had full confidence when she and her father agreed on sponsoring him in the Pro Dueling world, since he was a very intellectual duelist, who personally reached his perfection. The two had been seeing each other quite often, however since they were not at school, they maintained their relationship to be professional. As Ryō once stated before, dueling was his everything, and Nao had no intention of being unfair to him or the family. Instead she supported him as the daughter of the Fukugawa Family, and as a close friend when outside of the media.

When she reached the last page where the subscription envelope stuck out, she immediately turned back to the article about Ed Phoenix she bookmarked earlier. At that moment, Naturu Pineapple, her spiritual partner, appeared to accompany her.

"Is it strange when you look at someone's photo for a long time?" she quietly asked her friend, who only blinked. "Ed Phoenix is a genius duelist who reached his thirty-winning streak in the World League, and I know that I have no connection to him, but why do I keep looking?"

Naturu Pineapple gave Nao a sneaky look which she was baffled at. "Of course I do not like him! I never met him before," she stopped her words that came out of her mouth, but somehow, it didn't sit right on her tongue. "Did I?"

The ferry came to a stop and the intercom blared through the transport of the arrival at Duel Academia. Nao hastily stuck the magazine in her knapsack and stood up from her seat on the bench. "Let's go, Naturu Pineapple." Her spirit gave a happy sound in response while following her out of the boat.

She passed by Temporary Principal Chronos and a new Vice Principal Napoleon while hidden in the crowd, although she still did not understand why Principal Samejima left his post for vacation in the beginning of the year. Pushing her thoughts to the back of her mind, she went on her way to the Osiris Dorm, certain that Judai and Shō would be there already.

Sure enough, the two students were present but not in their rooms. She heard Judai exasperatingly chuckle from below and spotted Manjōme, Asuka and Tome with Shō at the edge of the cliff. Solid Vision from duel disks were in play, and it seemed like the Sanctuary in the Sky Field Magic.

"Don't praise me that much!" he said.

"Even though he's a second-year now, he's still an idiot," Manjōme scoffed.

"That's what Judai's good at," Nao made her entrance to the group and they turned their heads to the heiress.

"Nao, you came just now?" Asuka greeted her.

"Yes, there was something I had to do before arriving here. Who is Judai dueling?"

"A freshman came to our room and asked him for a duel," said Shō.

"A freshman? Who is he?"

"Most likely a duelist who likes to mess around with eight packs to create a deck," said Manjōme.

"A deck from eight packs?" her eyes widened in curiosity.

Judai's opponent wore a silver tuxedo with stylish silver hair to compliment it. Nao suspected that he was in control of the Field Magic, which made sense due to Archangel Zerato in his possession. The Osiris had Clayguardman in defense mode, and Winged Kuribō perched on his shoulder. There was a strange feeling sitting in her stomach that something didn't seem right about the freshman.

He appeared too insightful as an underclassman.

"From that look, I'm guessing that you couldn't draw the card you wanted," said Judai.

"It looks like I'd lose in a match where things are left to luck. Still, I believe that dueling isn't all about luck. I was told by someone that luck and destiny are different. A person's destiny has already been determined at the time of their birth. That is why everything in the future can be predicted - which of us will win and which of us will lose; that has already been decided," the freshman shared.

"I don't know who told you all that, but that's a pretty boring way of thinking. The world's fun because we don't know what'll happen next, isn't it?"

"Is that so? What will happen next has already been determined. I activate the Trap, Convening the Light. I discard my hand to choose one Light-Attribute monster in my Cemetery and add it to my hand. And, I activate Archangel Zerato's effect: by discarding Holy Shine Ball, I'm destroying Clayguardman!"

After clearing Judai from his monster, he had Kuribō-Summoning Flute to protect his Life Points on a whim. "My spirit just overturned your stupid prediction."

"Is that your ace in the hole, Senior? As I would expect from the legendary duelist who they say talks to spirits," the freshman complimented.

"Legendary? That's kinda cool!"

"A legend of foolishness?" Asuka wondered.

"Legendarily easy to please?" Shō sighed.

"A legendary mistake?" Nao scratched her cheek.

"He's a legendary idiot!" Manjōme scowled.

On Judai's next turn, he managed to summon Tempester using Fusion and attacked Archangel Zerato. The Elemental Hero destroyed the freshman's monster and cancelled the fusion for the three Fusion materials to eliminate the rest of his life points.

Nao didn't realize until the Solid Vision faded away that there was a hint of disappointment creeping in her mind.

"You all right, freshman?" Judai asked him. "You weren't half-bad out there! Gotcha! That sure was a fun duel!"

Nao had to keep herself from laughing at how hard Judai tried and failed to be a good senior.

"That boy isn't too bad, either, if he had a good mach with Judai using a deck like that," said Tome.

When the first-year student arrived at the top of the cliff, for a moment time seemed to dramatically slow down for Nao. She could have sworn that he looked straight at her but the others didn't quite notice. His blue eyes softened just the slightest before heading out of the area. Nao let out the breath she had been holding without knowing as soon as he disappeared from her view.

"That junior was a cute little guy, wasn't he?" Judai snapped her back out of her thoughts. "That was tough, since I'm not really the 'mentor' type."

"That's right. You're like a Big Bro, Big Bro," said Shō.

"When a guy who isn't great pretends to be great, he'll expose his defects," Manjōme shrugged his shoulders.

"Well, you would get hated by the juniors for it," Asuka warned him.

Suddenly, Shō cried out in realization. "I thought I've seen him somewhere!" He dug into his backpack for the Monthly Duel issue. He turned to a page and said, "I knew it! That guy's Ed Phoenix!"

"Yeah, he called himself Ed, though," Judai nodded.

"Wait, really?" Asuka gasped. "The young genius duelist in the middle of renewing his winning streak record in the Pro-Dueling World League?"

"There's no way!" Manjōme studied the photo on the page. "Well, that does look like him."

"Still, for a pro, he could've used some deck-building skills," said Judai.

"What you battled against was a deck built randomly from eight packs that were left on the shelves," Tome stood up.

"So, I had a close match with a duck like that?" he slumped his shoulders in shock. "Man, Ed Phoenix…"

"Get bummed, get bummed," Manjōme scoffed at him.

"No way! I want to battle against his real deck next time! I'm looking forward to it!"

Nao unconsciously tuned out the conversation and focused on her heart that was beating abnormally. The fact that she had seen Ed Phoenix without realizing was a foreign thought to think over. The strangest outcome was that she wasn't surprised.

In fact, she could have sworn for a second that she never knew him at all.

Meanwhile at the hospital back in Nao's hometown, Fukugawa Katsumaru and Fukugawa Chie sat nervously with the neurologist in the office.

"My daughter has been experiencing chronic headaches over the past three months and this had not happened for a long time," said the chairman. "It would not be something terminal like brain cancer, would it?"

"I have confidence that her results contained no symptoms of such," said the doctor. "Has she been doing any sort of activity that would trigger the headaches?"

"They occurred in unpredictable timing, doctor. Some lasted for a few seconds, while others for a few hours at longest," Chie answered.

"I will share one thing. Whatever the accident your daughter had encountered, there is an unexplained reason why this particular symptom shows. This long-term memory loss will only worsen her condition if she will not remember whatever she lost. The worst case is that she would eventually lose all her memories of herself, her family and her friends."

"What can we do?" Katsumaru pleaded. "Anything to help Nao?"

"If there is something or someone particular that she can be relatively close to, then that could be her only hope."

Nao's parents held hands and looked at each other worriedly, thinking of one person who would have a chance.

In a residence unknown, a man garbed in a white cloak in a white room laid out his tarot cards face down in a particular formation. His obscured eyes narrowed when the center card revealed to be "Temperance" and the one right above read "Death".

What he had been looking through was Ed's fated path of the near future. The third and last tarot card would tell him what the obstacle would be for the pro duelist to face.

The Lovers was flipped in reverse.


	2. Nao's Secret Admirer - Double Lockdown

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!GX except for Fukugawa Nao. All Naturia Synchro Monsters are changed to Ritual Monsters and Tuner Monsters are converted to regular Effect Monsters. Credits go to Takahashi Kazuki and Director Tsuji Hatsuki.

* * *

**Chapter 2**

**Nao's Secret Admirer - Double Lockdown**

It was already one week in the year and Manjōme dueled against an Obelisk Blue who graduated at the top of his middle school class to redeem his former rank. Although he won with ease, the inspired Osiris freshmen including Judai and Shō forced him to stay back. To accommodate himself even more, he began to remodel his room and hitched the top bunk in Judai's room.

On a Sunday night, Nao, Asuka, Junko and Momoe congregated in the bathhouse at the girls' dorm just to catch up with each other. The latter two were especially thrilled to receive any information about the Kaiser and his early career in the World League. Junko also poked fun at the younger duelist by noting that her chest got slightly bigger, who embarrassingly covered them with her arms for the entire bath.

"There was no need to be flustered, Nao. We are all women, and you would have relaxed a bit more," Junko teased as the four walked down their hallway.

"I am still a late adolescent," the heiress shrugged. "The three of you are more or less mature women unlike me."

"I am certain that you act older than Junko or Momoe."

"Asuka-sama," Junko whined.

"Thank you, Asuka," Nao smiled as they stopped at her room only to find a certain object that wasn't there when she left. A single thornless red rose sat at the foot of the door. Nao picked it up and studied it.

"A rose?"

"How romantic! You have a secret admirer," Momoe gushed.

"Who would it be from?" Nao tilted her head to the side.

"It could be from that Obelisk freshman Sorano Daigo who I saw you talk to so often," Junko grinned.

"Sorano?"

"Apparently, he is one of the top students from middle school."

Nao was utterly confused for a moment when she realized that she couldn't remember his face. Asuka said that she saw Nao with him many times during the week, but the heiress couldn't recall him until his face suddenly appeared in her head. Her mind must have been playing tricks on her lately.

"Ah, Sorano-kun," she realized, remembering the honorific she gave him.

Nao had met the first-year on the first day of school when she was in the library looking for a book on philosophical dueling. Because of her short stature, Sorano spotted her problem. Being a gentleman he was, he reached for the book and handed it to her. He had slightly tan skin with brown hair styled up to his liking and his kind eyes curved into smiles.

After thanking him, he introduced himself right away with a bit of a stutter. "I am S-Sorano Taigo," he said.

"It is a pleasure to meet you, Sorano," she politely smiled, which made him stare. Before she could tell him her name, it was revealed that he already knew who she was because of the Fukugawa Family's fame. He initially called her Senior Fukugawa, but Nao insisted on dropping the 'Senpai' title and asked him to just plainly call her Nao since they were the same age.

The two Obelisks were on friendly terms but Sorano would occasionally blush slightly whenever she smiled or giggled. As a result, Nao became a victim to love advice from Junko, Momoe and at one point, Fubuki.

"But he's just a friend," she pouted.

"The question is whether you are just a friend to him," Momoe winked.

"You two, maybe she should find out for sure who sent the rose," Asuka suggested.

The next day during physical activity after classes, the second-year students were pitted against the first-year students in a volleyball tournament. Nao teamed with Asuka, Junko, Momoe, Judai and Manjōme. The heiress just slipped on her knee pads when Sorano called her name with a wave. She waved back platonically, but her female teammates giggled at her.

"They are so cute," Junko squealed.

"I am telling you that we are just friends," Nao sighed.

Sorano watched Nao on the court as his team sat to wait for their round. His eyes followed her figure as she parried and tethered the ball with skill. What really caught his attention was when she leapt up to spike the ball, how her back arched when she was in mid-air. His friends snapped him out with nudges.

"You got it bad with Senior Fukugawa!" they joked.

"Hey, that's not it!" she stammered.

"Yeah right, but she is really pretty!" one of his friends said.

"You better back off, Taro, because she's gonna be taken by Taigo," another stuck out his tongue.

He had no intention of spoiling their friendship where he liked it, nor did he have any problem admiring her from afar. He would never possibly think that she had been bullied in her first year, not when she had attractive confidence accenting her violet eyes.

"Team 2-A wins," announced the referee, and cheers emitted from the fellow students.

"Teams 1-C and 1-D up for play!"

"That's us. Let's go," Sorano said and stood up from the bench. His friends followed him to the court and crossed paths with Nao's team. She gave another smile at him, which he couldn't react in time. He pushed his thoughts aside when he played, which they won easily.

"He seems to be a good match for you, Fukugawa," Fubuki said out loud, and plopped a seat behind her.

"What exactly do you mean?" she raised her eyebrows at him.

"Well, he is a top first-year student like you were, an excelling athlete and very handsome," he listed with his fingers. "With that alone, he earns twenty munekyun points."

"Excuse me?" she balked.

"Fubuki-nii-san, if she's not interested then she's not interested," Asuka defended for her.

"I am only the expert in love who takes no sides," he waved it off.

Soon afterwards, Nao's team and Sorano's team were the last competitors to end the tournament. The team captains shook hands before starting the heated final match. On the last serve, both teams kept the ball going back and forth until Taro bumped the ball high towards Nao. Judai gave her a boost with his hands and spiked it down to the floor like a meteor right past Sorano who stood frozen.

"We did it!" Nao cheered after Judai gave her a high-five.

The first-year boy suddenly cleared his throat marched up towards the heiress, who gave him her full attention.

"Fukugawa Nao, I cannot take this loss today. I would like to challenge you to a duel," he blurted with a flush on his face. Her eyes widened in shock.

"What is the meaning of this, Sorano?"

"Nao, I really really like you," he stuttered, which his friends cheered at his confession. "I want to duel for your affections."

"Sorano," she softened.

"Please," he bowed low, which she panicked at slightly.

"Raise your head, Sorano. I will accept the challenge," she sighed, seeing that there was no way around the situation he created.

"What's going on?" Judai cluelessly muttered out for only Asuka and Manjōme to hear.

"That Fukugawa is gaining more attention than last year," Manjōme crossed his arms.

"I suppose she doesn't have much choice now," said Asuka.

After both teams changed back into their uniforms, they headed for the Obelisk arena where Sorano and Nao prepared their decks and duel disks. Shō and Fubuki also arrived to show their support.

"Man, I haven't seen Nao duel in a while," Judai breathed in excitedly.

"Another Love Duel early in the year," Shō groaned.

"Be prepared, Sorano," Nao warned him.

"You should, too," he replied.

"Duel!" They started with four thousand points and their five cards.

"I'll take the first turn. Draw!" He scanned his hand and nodded to himself. "I summon Horus the Black-Flame Dragon LV4 in attack mode!" A black metallic dragon perched onto the field against Nao.

**Horus the Black-Flame Dragon LV4  
Dragon-Type  
ATK: 1600 DEF: 1000**

"A Horus deck?" she muttered to himself. "From my hand, Naturu Cosmobeet's effect activates. When the opponent Normal Summons a monster, this card can be Special Summoned from my hand." Her frequently-used cosmobeet sprouted out in attack mode.

**Naturu Cosmobeet (Level 2)  
Plant-Type  
ATK: 1000 DEF: 700**

"Nao, I'm going to fight for your affections, so I will give everything I have. I activate the Magic Card, Level Up! By sending Horus the Black-Flame Dragon LV4 to the Cemetery, I can Special-Summon Horus the Black-Flame Dragon LV6 from my deck." The smaller dragon burst into flames before a moderately larger incarnation emerged in its place

**Horus the Black-Flame Dragon LV6  
Dragon-Type  
ATK: 2300 DEF: 1600**

"A monster with 2300 attack points on the first turn?" Shō marvelled.

"I'll place two cards face-down to end my turn."

Nao was well aware of Horus's special effects in its LV4, LV6 and LV8 forms. He was attempting to use a lock-down strategy against her, but she had to do something before it was too late.

"My turn. Draw! I activate Angel's Charity. I draw three cards from my deck, and discard Awakening and Princess of Camellias, Tytannial to the Cemetery. Next, I tribute Naturu Cosmobeet to summon Naturu Stag Beetle in Attack Mode!" Her small plant disappeared for a moment and a large stag beetle buzzed in.

**Naturu Stag Beetle (Level 6)  
Insect-Type  
ATK: 2200 DEF: 1500**

"My monster is still stronger," said Sorano.

"I am not quite finished. I activate the Ritual Magic, High-Class Ritual Art. By removing Normal Monsters from my Deck to the Cemetery, I can summon a Ritual Monster from my hand. I remove Level 2 Palm Tree and Level 5 Queen of Autumn Leaves to Ritual Summon Naturu Landoise in Attack Mode!"

As the sealing circle engulfed her two Normal Monsters, a large turtle made of earth took shape.

**Naturu Landoise (Level 7)  
Rock-Type  
ATK: 2350 DEF: 1600**

"Naturu Landoise's monster effect negates any activation of a monster effect by sending one Magic Card from my hand to the Cemetery. Battle! Naturu Landoise attacks Horus the Black-Flame Dragon LV6! Earthquake Disaster!"

Her new Ritual Monster stomped its four feet and buried Sorano's monster within the cracks that formed below it, and chipped fifty life points from him. "Naturu Stag Beetle, direct attack! Pinch Blade!"

The large stag beetle fluttered to Sorano and snipped at him with its pincers, and lowered his life points even further to seventeen hundred fifty. Nao was now in an overwhelming lead on the second turn.

"I set one card face-down to end my turn."

"Permanent Trap Card activate: Royal Decree. As long as it is face-up, neither player can activate Trap cards." Nao gritted her teeth, but kept calm in order to anticipate his next move.

"My turn. Draw! I activate Pot of Greed to draw two cards from my Deck. From my hand, I activate Premature Burial. I pay 800 points to Special-Summon one monster from my Cemetery in Attack Mode. Be revived, Horus the Black-Flame Dragon LV6!" Just when she defeated it, the dragon reappeared with a growl.

"I equip Horus the Black-Flame Dragon LV6 with the Equip Magic Gigantic Conversion. While my Life Points are lower than the opponent, the equipped monster's attack power will double." The dark hue from the dragon seemed to glow much brighter as it gained more power.

"4600 attack points?" she gasped.

"Horus the Black-Flame Dragon LV6 attacks Naturu Landoise! Black Flame!" The metallic dragon projected a dark blue fire at Landoise and melted it down to nothing. Nao's life was brought down by more than half.

"At this turn's End Phase, Horus the Black-Flame Dragon LV6's monster effect activates. When it destroys a monster by battle, Horus evolves to Horus the Black-Flame Dragon LV8! Appear, Horus the Black-Flame Dragon LV8!" The already-powerful dragon evolved even further to a towering form that put Nao on edge.

**Horus the Black-Flame Dragon LV8  
Dragon-Type  
ATK: 3000 DEF: 1800**

"I end my turn."

"Sorano, I can see another reason why you wanted to challenge me," she called out to him. "You do not like to lose."

"Of course, especially to someone I like," he tried to flirt.

"You must realize that I do not like to lose either. So I will fight as hard as you will. My turn. Draw!" She drew a trap card but cursed to herself. It wasn't the card she needed yet but she needed to make some preparations. "From my hand, I summon Naturu Marron in Defense Mode!"

**Naturu Marron (Level 3)  
Plant-Type  
ATK: 1200 DEF: 700**

"Naturu Marron's effect activates. When successfully Normal Summoned, I send one Naturu monster from my Deck to the Cemetery. I select Naturu Bamboo Shoot." Once she placed it in her cemetery, she continued. "Also, once per turn, this card will allow me to retrieve two Naturu monsters from my Cemetery, add them to my deck and shuffle. Then I draw one card," she explained while shuffling her deck. Another trap card, she frowned. Before she finished her turn, she eyed on the set card that Sorano didn't activate yet. If he kept it on his field, then he would be waiting for a moment to use it so he can use some way to destroy Royal Decree.

"I set two cards face-down and switch Naturu Stag Beetle to Defense Mode to end my turn."

"My turn. Draw! I activate the Instant Magic, Cyclone!"

Just as she predicted, Nao thought. "Cyclone will destroy Royal Decree. I will end this right now." Once he destroyed the trap card, he only activated the other. "Permanent Trap, Dragon's Imperial Wrath! When a Dragon-Type monster I control attacks a monster in Defense Position, it will inflict piercing damage to the opponent." Nao's eyes widened at the effect.

"This duel is mine! Go, Horus the Black-Flame Dragon LV8! Attack Naturu Marron! Black Giga Flame!"

"Your haste would only blind you from what is right in front of you, Sorano," she said cryptically and eyed her face-down cards.

"Damn it!"

"Trap Card open: Thorn Wall. When a Plant-Type monster is selected as an attack target, all of the opponent's monsters in Attack Position are destroyed."

The wall covered Naturu Marron and the thorns pierced into the dragon and caused an explosion.

"How could I not see it coming?" he scolded himself.

"Perhaps I am proven to be too distracting for you," she lightly joked.

"That smile," he softly hummed, "That kindness - you distract me but it's a distraction that I would never mind. You give off a good example of a student here and you do not resent nor strut. You're like a goddess to the first-year students that we admire and we want to be like you. Please accept my feelings, Fukugawa Nao."

Sorano's friends gave wolf whistles and cat calls to keep the mood, but it didn't really help the others at all.

"Things are getting a little off topic," Judai puffed his cheeks.

"That Sorano is too sappy for Fukugawa," Manjōme rolled his eyes.

"You shouldn't be talking, Manjōme. You were like Sorano last year to Asuka," Shō glared at him. Asuka cleared her throat to avoid the topic.

"Sorano, he has charisma, poetry and skill. If Nao falls, then he earns one hundred munekyun points," Fubuki grinned. Junko and Momoe cooed at Nao, uttering out that she was very lucky for someone as young as she was.

"I'm sorry, Sorano, but I cannot accept your feelings. I acknowledge your affections and I am very flattered, but I truly treasure our friendship even more. You see the good in others that many lack, and it is a rare honesty that I cannot push away."

"Nao," he whispered.

"Besides, this is a very fun duel. It is still your turn, Sorano. I will still not hold back if you won't," she grinned.

"Right. I activate Level Modulation. This card lets the opponent draw two cards and Special Summon one Level monster from the Cemetery ignoring its summoning conditions. It cannot attack nor activate its effect for this turn. Be revived, Horus the Black-Flame Dragon LV8!"

The dragon that was once destroyed by the thorn wall was now resurrected to the field just as strong.

"With that, I end my turn. This is your last turn, Nao," he gave a warning.

Nao did agree that the next draw would be her last and none of the cards in her hand could help due to Horus's effect. She then shook her head, and told herself to trust in her deck. At that moment, Naturu Pineapple spiritually appeared with an eye smile which she smiled back at.

"My turn. Draw!" She glanced at the card after some hesitation, and her eye lit up with a twinkle. "Sorano, I do thank you for this duel in advance, because I am able to summon my new monster."

"New monster?" he inquired.

"I tribute Naturu Stag Beetle and Naturu Marron on my field to summon this," she held out her card briefly before placing it on her duel disk. "Scatter in the Warm Breeze of Spring: Princess of Cherry Blossoms, Talaya!" In a shower of cherry blossoms appeared a Japanese Woman in a blossom patterned kimono in a modern trim. Talaya stopped the shower with her fan to finish her entrance.

**Princess of Cherry Blossoms, Talaya (Level 8)  
Plant-Type  
ATK: 2800 DEF: 1200**

"Is this her new Flower Princess? That Nao is something," Fubuki mused.

"Permanent Trap open: Call of the Living Dead. This card Special-Summons one monster from the Cemetery to the field in Attack Mode. Bloom back: Princess of Camellias, Tytannial!" Her ace monster bloomed from the center of the camellia beside her fellow companion.

"Two Flower Princesses on the field? But both attack strengths are lower than Horus the Black-Flame Dragon LV8," Sorano noted.

"Princess of Cherry Blossoms, Talaya's effect gains 100 attacks points for each Plant-Type monster I control. Since both Flower Princess are on the field, Talaya gains 200 attack points," she explained as Talaya's attack power raised to three thousand, matching Sorano's dragon.

"Battle! Princess of Cherry Blossoms, Talaya attacks Horus the Black-Flame Dragon LV8! Cherry Blossom Torrent!" Both monsters attacked each other and caused destruction on both sides in a draw. As a result, the remaining cherry blossoms danced around the field laced with blue flames.

"Horus is…" he grunted.

"This will settle it," she prepared and he gasped. "Trap Card open: Blossom Bomber! When a Plant-Type monster I control destroys the opponent's monster and sends it to the Cemetery, his card inflicts damage to the opponent equal to the destroyed monster's original attack power."

The flowers finally burst into bombs from the dying flames by Sorano as his life points dropped to zero. The Solid Vision disappears and both players disengaged their duel disks.

"Nao won!" Shō threw his hands up.

"Of course she would win," Judai poked his roommate.

"Why did she reject such a well-mannered man?" Fubuki tearily lamented, while Asuka sighed at his over-optimistic failure.

Nao walked to Sorano who was knelt down on the floor in disbelief. He raised his head when she reached for his hand which he took. "Are we still friends, Sorano?"

He was taken aback for a moment but he returned the friendly tone. "Of course we are. I thought about what you said to me, and you are right. Being friends with someone like you is more cherishing."

"I see. I will respect your opinions then," she grinned before they both let go and went their separate ways.

The burdens left both duelists' shoulders throughout the rest of the week and they continued to share each other's company. The everyday routine repeated with one or two surprises for Nao, including some twists in her mind that caused her to forget even the littlest things such as her schoolwork or some people she befriended.

On the next Sunday night, she was on her way back from the washroom to go to bed, but she stopped at her door to pick up a second thornless red rose. If Sorano wasn't the one who sent the flowers, Nao wondered who did.


	3. New Changes

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!GX except for Fukugawa Nao. All Naturia Synchro Monsters are changed to Ritual Monsters and Tuner Monsters are converted to regular Effect Monsters. Credits go to Takahashi Kazuki and Director Tsuji Hatsuki.

* * *

**Chapter 3**

**New Changes**

Asuka watched a very irritated Nao pack some of her belongings in her knapsack at the Blue Dorm. The elder didn't blame her at all, since she had her own objection to living there also. She eyed her tote bag that contained contents she absolutely detested while Nao slapped half the stack of proposals into the garbage can, each letter the exact same as the next. She then slipped the other half into a paper shopping bag and slung her knapsack. The heiress turned to Asuka, both nodding that they were ready to leave. Nao eyed at the roses in a glass vase she put them in, now that there were four roses she collected. Her irritated expression softened just slightly before she closed the door behind her.

The one place where both would most likely be welcome other than the Obelisk Blue dorm but rather the Osiris Red where their friends were. Asuka and Nao walked up the stairs and entered Judai's already opened room, where Manjōme explained that his room had been completed. Upon entering, Nao glanced at a new muscular figure in the room, who sported the Ra Yellow uniform heavily altered with its absent sleeves and numerous accessories. He was very tan and his dark hair in long dreadlocks under a bandana.

"I could show it to you, though," Manjōme teased, which in turn Shō took for granted.

"I was hoping you'd show us." Judai shared the same excitement.

"Then there's no helping it. Follow me," he shrugged but as soon as he turned around, he was met with the two Obelisk girls with a bag each in tow. "Tenjōin? Fukugawa?"

"Who are they?" asked the Ra Yellow acquaintance.

"Asuka? Nao?" Judai inquired at them.

"We left the Blue dorm. Think you could let us stay here?" Asuka bluntly requested, and Nao nearly stumbled over when the boys balked out loud. Manjōme, however with Asuka now in his presence, did not hesitate to give a tour when he previously did. He walked the group to the room near the cafeteria and showed each space one by one.

The renovations did leave Nao and Asuka quite impressed with two two-floor rooms that used to have an interior wall for it. The old basic furniture was replaced with a luxurious and stylish fashion fitting for an Obelisk.

Manjōme even went out of his way to install a spa as his own personal bathroom. The bottom floor consisted of a spacious lounge and bathroom while the upper level held the two bedrooms. In the end, the dorm exterior still remained the same.

"Is this the same Red dorm?" gasped the Ra Yellow, who earlier introduced himself as Tyranno Kenzan. He was a first year student who used dinosaur-like terms like 'saurus' and 'don'. Nao assumed in his case that he would most likely use a dinosaur-themed deck.

"It's fantastic, isn't it? Is it really all right if we use this room?" Nao asked for herself and Asuka.

"Well, this is Manjōme's…?" Judai stuttered but the latter interrupted affirmatively.

"Of course! I welcome you both!"

"If you do that, you'll fall back into our room again!" Judai reminded.

"Nah, I'm so moved that Tenjōin and Fukugawa came to move in here!"

"Was something going on over at Blue?" Shō wondered.

"Yes, there was! Look at this!" Asuka exasperated and dug into her tote bag to pull out a bright magenta frilly dress. "That Temporary Principal Chronos - he told me to wear this, and to duel and sing!"

"Would it mean that you'd become the academy's Idol?" Shō put two and two together

"Yeah. He made some Idol Training Course in Blue just as he pleases like that," she grumbled. There was an odd and awkward silence among the boys, more importantly with Manjōme having a silly grin on his face.

"What's with you?"

"Still, Asuka, why're you walking off with a dress you don't want?" Judai asked.

"You idiot. Asuka's suing about her distress in Blue. So, she's taking her proof." Nao sighed while still feeling irritated about her own predicament.

"Oh, is that it?"

"Fukugawa, what is going on with you then?" asked the black thunder.

Nao puffed her cheeks and thrusted out the paper bag to Manjōme, who took out the contents and read over the top paper. "Proposals to your family?"

"Read them all," she groaned.

Judai, Tyranno and Shō gathered around him and they collectively gasped when each letter was the same word for word all from Vice-Principal Napoleon to ask for her family's support to tear down the Red Dorm.

"You're here because?"

"My allegiance is to the Red Dorm so that he would stop sending proposals to me or my family."

"Then why didn't you tell them?"

"If I did then Vice-Principal Napoleon will send them to the Manjōme Group as an alternative," she gave him a look and he sighed in agreement.

"Since Principal Samejima isn't here, both Temporary Principal Chronos and Vice-Principal Napoleon are doing as much as they want to, and I just can't stand it anymore!" Asuka huffed in frustration.

"And now, on top of that, they're trying to demolish our Red dorm?" Judai said. "They can't get away with this."

Suddenly, the door opened and Misawa dashed inside with urgency. "Judai! We have trouble!"

"Misawa? It's been a while, kinda," he muttered.

"Come to think of it, you _were _here, Misawa," Shō said. He cleared his throat and said that he was indeed. Everyone gathered at the couches as Misawa discussed what he had heard to them, more specifically to a flustered Shō.

"I'm dueling a Blue opponent?"

"Your opponent's name is Kochō Ran. It sounds like you'll be approved for a rank-up to Ra Yellow if you win this duel, Shō." Nao visibly paled and froze in her seat at the wretched name she thought to herself. "You've dueled her before, Fukugawa, haven't you?"

"She's one of the better-skilled people among the Blues, and she's been nicknamed the 'Insect Princess'," Asuka said.

"A wretched wretch," Nao cursed to herself in remorse.

"So she's one of the best there?" Manjōme mused. "Well, guess it'll be too heavy a load for you."

"What're you talking about? If Nao can beat her then Shō can too," said Judai, and earned a jeer from Nao. "The stronger your opponent, the more you get fired up! C'mon! It's your long-awaited duel You'll win this for sure, and you'll show us your skills!"

"This is ridiculous. There's no way someone like me can beat a Blue opponent! I'm just going to lose miserably in front of the whole school!" Shō sobbed and ran out of the room to his own. Tyranno chased after him in response.

When they left the room, Asuka sensed Nao's discomfort at the thought of one of the few people who still looked down on her at the Blue dorm. She remembered earlier on in the second year when the heiress and the insect princess crossed paths and made sparks fly between them. Ran still boasted about herself while Nao didn't even bother talking back.

"Nao?"

"Don't tell me you haven't told her off, Fukugawa," Manjōme scoffed.

Nao's clenched fists only led Judai to say, "The only thing that matters is that she won against her before. She might not be worth telling off."

The strangest part was that Nao never uttered a word about it, because she couldn't remember why she was bullied in the first place. She shook the thought away and said, "Judai's right. She doesn't intimidate me enough to back away."

Later on after dinner at the Red Dorm, Nao spotted Shō outside by the cliff holding out his Power Bond card and studying it. He had a troubled look on his face and she wanted to know what was wrong.

"Shō?"

He jumped slightly and turned around to meet her face. "Nao? What are you doing here?"

"Can I keep you company?" she asked and he complied. The two of them then sat on the ledge and looked out at the ocean. There was a comfortable silence between them before she broke it. "Ryō once told me that the ocean always cleared his mind for anything, whether it'd be a duel or not."

"How can you tell?"

Nao giggled, "It's because of the Power Bond card you hold in your hand. You told me that he taught you to respect your opponents."

"Kenzan said something about evolving. I haven't changed at all from last year," his tone dropped.

"What he said is true. Kochō Ran may be strong, and she would rather pin her opponents down with snarky remarks - but she is not a true duelist like you or your brother. That is why I know you will win tomorrow."

"You really think so?"

"Things are easier said than done in her own morals," Nao sighed. Shō paused and nodded to himself.

"Thanks, Nao. You, Big Bro and Kenzan were trying to tell me something important, but I've been too afraid to listen."

"You are better to be convinced than probably me," she winked as she stood up and brushed her skirt from the dirt. "It's getting really late. We'll support you tomorrow, Shō."

When she left him alone again, Shō gazed at the Power Bond card once more before making his final decision about himself and about tomorrow.

The next day in the main arena, there was a lot of gossip and murmuring amongst the students about Shō, being referred as "The Kaiser's little brother". Nao heaved a sigh when she heard every comment saying that he wouldn't stand a chance. From the corner of her eye, she saw Manjōme joining beside Judai and Asuka behind her, while Kenzan to her left leaned against the seat in front of him to get a closer look.

"Hey, you're late," Judai remarked.

"Just took care of something," Manjōme shrugged it off and remained quiet afterwards.

"So, you're Marufuji Shō? You're one plain kid. I really wouldn't have pegged you to be my Ryō's kid brother," she drawled while emphasizing on 'my'. She clicked her locket open to reveal Ryō's picture, which made Nao clear her throat in disgust.

"What's she starting up over there?" Judai scowled.

"She's giving me a bad vibe," Kenzan growled lowly.

"Kochō Ran is a wildly-enthusiastic fan of Ryō," Asuka sighed, while leaving out the part that Ran had been very openly jealous of Nao and her close relationship with the Kaiser. With the age and puberty difference between the two girls, all the more reason to bother the heiress.

"Though I'm no interested in a dropout being my opponent, Temporary Principal Chronos has said that he will refer me to the Dueling World League if I win this duel," said Ran. "So I'll be going all out on you. No hard feelings, right, boy?"

Because of the circumstances, Nao inwardly and desperately hoped that Shō would win. There was no way she would let a clingy teenage girl infest the World League, and her family had the power to fix that.

"I don't need you to hold back!" Shō punched out and switched on his duel disk. Ran did the same and the duel commenced.

As Nao watched the duel, Shō had the initial lead in life points until Ran successfully summoned her ace monster, Insect Princess. Kenzan muttered to himself that this was his consequence for insulting bagworms, referring to when he tried to hide away in his blankets like a cocoon. As soon as she brought her Field Magic, all of Ran's lower level monsters moved to Shō's field. Nao remembered the same strategy when she dueled against her before.

Judai mentioned out loud that he would've won already if he had Power Bond in his deck, but Manjōme stated that it wasn't. He held out a white envelope to Judai, who opened it to take out the very same card. The others were just as shocked, but before they made any assumptions, Manjōme said that Shō gave it to him to give to Judai. Nao couldn't quite understand why, but continued to watch nonetheless.

Even when Shō started to counterattack, Ran decided to take in desperate measures and put him down with blunt insults. "Tell me, as a bum in Red, wouldn't you say that you were Yuki Judai's flunky?"

"Yeah, I would," Shō glared back. "What's it to you?"

"A flunky should do as a flunky does! Don't get in my way here!"

Shō gritted his teeth and snapped, "Shut up!" Even Nao and the others were taken aback from the outburst. "Yeah, I've always just been chasing after things, ever since I was little. Chasing after my Big Brother, and Big Bro, I just chased after them. But I've made up my mind! I won't remain in their shadows anymore! I'll get stronger, and I'll walk with them!"

Judai felt very moved, finally understanding Shō's struggles and goals. On the final turn, Shō summoned an impressive monster called Super Vehicroid Jumbo Drill that not only destroyed Insect Princess, but also dealing Piercing Damage to Ran's remaining life points. Nao let out a breath of relief that she had been holding the entire duel.

"The guy did some fine evolution out there, too!" Kenzan grinned.

"This is so mean! My Ryō!" Ran tearily shrilled, which Nao smirked to herself about.

When everyone returned to the Red Dorm, Shō made a decision and shared it with the group.

"You're going to Ra Yellow?" Asuka asked.

"So then, you'll be doing exactly what Temporary Principal Chronos wants!" Manjōme warned him.

"Don't you care what happens to the Red dorm?" Kenzan inquired.

Despite the protests, Judai was the only one to encourage his roommate to move on up. He understood that he wanted to go to Ra Yellow to get stronger, though he stated that he didn't have to rely on Power Bond. The others eventually agreed to Judai and properly sent him off, although Kenzan began to shed some tears of pride as Shō walked away from the dorm.

This, however, was short lived because the following night, Shō burst into the Red Dorm cafeteria in his new Ra Yellow uniform. He marched up to Kenzan and pointed, "Kenzan! Those are my fried shrimp!"

"Weren't you over at Yellow?" Kenzan chewed and held up the remaining fried shrimp.

"I figured I'd want to eat with Big Bro, so I came to stay here. I won't give the title of "younger-brother-like friend" to you!" he glared.

"Give me my tears back!" Kenzan snarled.

"You cried on your own," Shō blew a raspberry teasingly.

"Quit if with the noise! You need to be quiet while you're eating!" Manjōme interrupted.

"Well, I think it's fine," Judai shrugged and snuck his chopsticks to snatch a fried shrimp from Manjōme's plate.

"Hey, you jerk! My fried shrimp!"

"My tears!" Kenzan shouted.

"Give them back!" They shouted at the same time. Asuka and Nao, who were sitting further away from them, glanced at each other in confusion before shaking their heads in shame as they quietly ate their own fried shrimp.


	4. The Hierophant and The Temperance

IneffablePassion's note: I finally drew Nao, in case you haven't noticed. Currently drawing a full body shot and posting both up on DeviantArt soon.

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!GX except for Fukugawa Nao. All Naturia Synchro Monsters are changed to Ritual Monsters and Tuner Monsters are converted to regular Effect Monsters. Credits go to Takahashi Kazuki and Director Tsuji Hatsuki.

* * *

**Chapter 4**

**The Hierophant and The Temperance**

It was early in the evening on a school day when Judai and Nao had a practice duel just for the sake of old times. Misawa also joined them to provide some spectating company. Nao had Princess of Cherry Blossoms, Talaya on her field while Judai had Flame Wingman and Sparkman on his.

"I activate the Magic card, Fusion! Come out, Shining Flare Wingman," said Judai. "Shining Shoot!" The silver hero flawlessly defeated her princess and her life points as the solid vision faded away.

"Gotcha," Judai winked.

"You really polished up on your dueling since last year's graduation duel with Ryō," Nao complimented.

"You think?" he scratched his cheek.

Misawa walked up on the arena towards the two. "You don't need to evolve your deck any more radically than you have, do you?"

"I dunno, I've been feeling like my deck should have some new stages to it. I mean with the new freshmen coming in and all," he trailed off and pulled out November's edition of Monthly Duel with the article about Ryō bookmarked.

"Maybe your deck is versatile enough that it's already fully evolved," Nao wondered. She stopped when her phone rang in her pocket. She had received one only for emergencies from her father before the start of the year, though she rarely called anyone.

"Yes, Father?" she answered the call. She paused to listen to the latest news and then she audibly gasped in shock, which caught Misawa's and Judai's attention. "Is that certain?"

Another pause.

"I understand. Thank you," she hung up and paled slightly.

"What's up?" Judai asked.

"My father just reported that Kaiser Ryō's next opponent has been decided!"

"The Kaiser's?"

Before she could answer him, Shō dashed inside the arena and gave the same news. He dragged the three of them back to the Red Dorm where the World League news were on television. The confirmed opponent made them not only anticipate for the match, but also curious as to how it would turn out for both duelists. Out of the group, however, two of them were especially uncomfortable about it.

**Ed Phoenix and Kaiser Ryō prepared for the next Pro League Battle**, the headline said.

Judai remembered when the Pro Duelist literally put together a deck out of eight packs and nearly defeated the Osiris. When Manjōme said that Ed wouldn't win against the Kaiser, Judai had some second guesses.

Nao couldn't understand why, but when Ed Phoenix's name would be mentioned out loud, she would feel herself freeze in an unknown emotion. Even if she had her support for Ryō, something didn't feel right, as if she was on the wrong side.

"Hey, the Fukugawa Family is sponsoring Ryō right?" Asuka asked Nao.

"Not to mention that if the Kaiser's performance goes downhill, so will the Fukugawa Family," Misawa warned.

"Yes, but we have full confidence in him. This is the Kaiser we are talking about," Nao firmly assured, despite that she had doubts of her own.

Meanwhile back in the city, Ryō walked out of the restaurant with a middle-aged man after having a fruitful conversation about the future plans.

"On that note, Kaiser Ryō, we are expecting greater efforts from you than those so far," said the man. "With your great efforts, the image of the Fukugawa Family, your sponsor, will prosper." They shook briefly shook hands.

"I won't betray your expectations. I will do my best," he said.

"Shall I give you a ride?" the man offered.

"No, thank you. There's a nice moon out today, so I'll let the night wind guide me home," he politely declined.

"I see," he entered his car. Just when the door closed, he rolled down his window. "I must give you the only warning I will ever give you."

He had a different tone than earlier in the evening, with some hints of sadness and caution. "I suggest to keep your relationship with my daughter no closer than a professional one. I understand and appreciate your connection with her, but this is business and I will not have Nao be a subject in the middle of it. It would only give the both of you nothing but grief."

"I understand, Chairman Fukugawa," he bowed.

"Well then, good night, Kaiser Ryō," said the chairman and the car drove away. Ryō watched the vehicle until he couldn't see it anymore, and his heart felt just a little heavier than usual. He would always feel more empowered to respect his opponents all for the sake of Nao. As he walked along the busy commercial streets, he wondered what kind of deck his next opponent, Ed Phoenix, would use. He reached into his pocket to fish out his own phone and read the most recent text message he received from Nao.

"Be careful tomorrow," it said.

After heeding to the chairman's warning, he hesitated on replying. Before he attempted to change his mind, a scream pierced through the air in a nearby alley. He dashed in the same direction but found a stranger collapsed on the ground and his cards showering his defeat.

"Your destiny has already been decided," said an ominous voice as it left the scene.

Ryō reached for the man and asked if he was alright, who replied that his opponent was a monster before losing his consciousness. He peered up over the skyscrapers just when a mysterious shadow slipped away. The police arrived moments later to retrieve the man, while the Kaiser continued to wonder what had just happened.

In a white room in a place unknown, a hooded and cloaked man read his daily tarot reading when he heard footsteps behind him. "How careless. Why don't you give up on these foolish games?"

"These aren't games to me," said a teenager in a silver tuxedo that matched his silver hair. Ed Phoenix smirked at his new accomplishment of the day.

"I wouldn't expect the man you seek to be among the scoundrels loitering around that area. Well," the older man paused, "I suppose it would be different if this is a ritual that you need to settle your overflowing anger." He held out one of the cards in front of him. "I have seen your future. Your duel with Kaiser Ryō…"

"It will end in my victory," Ed finished. "The card that has appeared is the Chariot, a perfect victory."

"So, has the ability to be able to predict the future been endowed onto you, just as it was onto me?" he mused.

"No, Saiou, that is the only card that has appeared when you tell me fortune. Even when I battled with Yuki Judai, that would've been my victory. However, you ordered me to lose."

"Your connection with Yuki Judai will bring about a new growth within you. You should have also known that there was some small achievement you gained from it."

"A duelist of his caliber? It's true that your predictions have always pointed me to the shortest path towards becoming the strongest duelist. However, it's a waste for me to go to that academy. My goal is to dominate the Pro League, and to stand at the top of the world - and to make sure that I find him."

"Ed, in the futures that I see, there are no mistakes," the man Ed referred to as Saiou, assured him.

"Fine, then. After my match with the Kaiser, settling that matter will come in due time, as well."

"I will offer you one last consolation should you return to the Academy. Perhaps it is time to recover the past that may have not been a mere dream, Ed. The one you had hidden away does not need to be hidden anymore," he cryptically advised when he flipped over the Temperance card on the table, which make the Pro Duelist freeze slightly. He placed his right hand in his pocket as he left the room to retire for the night.

Nao held her temple as the most anticipated duel was on standby for the broadcast. She couldn't sleep very consistently last night because of another chronic headache she had to endure.

She dreamt the same dream that constantly replayed itself in her mind. She felt the pounding rain on her skin and the clothes clinging onto her prone state. She couldn't quite put a finger on it, but she saw a white sinister light nearby. As it slowly and sneakily floated towards her, Nao wanted to move and flee, but because it was a dream she was forced to watch.

There was pain, however, rippling through her body as if she relived the very moment. She cried out through her hoarse throat for a name, but she couldn't hear what she said. All she could hear was a ghostly snicker and the heavy rain. When she woke up that morning, the headache only gotten stronger than when she was asleep. She informed her parents about them, but her questions and concerns were never answered. At one point, she ended up searching through Manjōme's drawers for some pills to relieve her headaches.

Nao was almost about to assume that something terrible was hidden from her.

She was also worried when she never gotten a reply from her last message to Ryō. When she sent it to him, she felt that something drastic was going to happen and it made her slightly nauseous. This duel was supposed to be an exciting moment, not a dreading one. Nothing had been sitting right with Nao and she couldn't find a way out of it.

She looked up when Asuka said that the duel was about to start. The cameras spanned from outside of the Kaiba Dome to the arena where thousands of fans and spectators enthusiastically cheered for both duelists. The fireworks began and Kaiser Ryō was the first to make his appearance, calm and collected like he usually was. The scariest part in Nao's opinion was that Ed Phoenix was just as calm, and on the borderline of mock.

The two fan clubs on camera also set Manjōme on edge of jealousy.

"At last, the big match of the century has come to fruition! Building high opes for not losing his ten matches, it's Kaiser Ryō! And striking against him - accomplishing his desire for the top ranking the other day without losing his own thirty matches is the Noble Youth of the Pro League, Ed Phoenix," introduced the podcaster. "What kind of dueling will these two show us?"

When they switched on their duel disks and drew their first five cards, Ed took the initiative for the first turn. "It's my turn. Draw!"

There was a brief moment when Ed gave a small smirk, "The monster I'll be summoning… is this guy!"

The card that he held out shellshocked every student and professor in the classroom, especially Judai and the others. It was a deck that no one had ever dreamed of seeing.

Ed had just summoned Elemental Hero Featherman in Attack Position.

As the duel continued on screen and while Judai and the others had gotten used to the fact Ed had a Hero Deck against the Kaiser, it only went downhill for Nao's hopes and Ryō's efforts. His strategies were deceivingly large scale, but his opponent swatted each attempt away like a mosquito. It was in the middle of the duel when he started to get serious. The students were on the edge of their seats when the Kaiser brought out his Cyber End Dragon to make a victory run, but Ed turned it into a weakness, and afterwards - his defeat.

No one uttered a word. Nothing seemed possible anymore. After fathoming the fact that Ed Phoenix confidently bested the perfect alumni, the Professional League looked more dangerous than imagined. Nao remained in shock until she went off to be alone and collect herself before she would return to the Red Dorm. Not even sleep could calm her.

Meanwhile back at in Manjōme's room, the group gathered at the couches discussing the match amongst themselves. Shō kept glancing at the empty spot beside Asuka, where Nao would have been. "I wonder if Nao is alright."

"She's just in shock, but she's taking this too hard," Asuka sighed.

"Didn't you guys also notice that she's been acting more withdrawn than usual? She looked like she hasn't been getting enough sleep either," Manjōme pondered. Sometimes in the middle of the night, he would hear distant shuffling and gasping from upstairs where Nao and Asuka slept. He also noticed his pain relief pills running low, and he wasn't the one who took them.

"There's also something strange. She seemed to be more forgetful these days. She kept asking my name," Kenzan noticed.

"That's right! She even asked me who Hayato was," Judai added.

"She may be too stressed about the Kaiser's career than her own personal life," Misawa crossed his arms. "It happens."

The Ojama Trio appeared and muttered to themselves, "Now that they mentioned it, she had forgotten about us, too." Even they hummed in thought. After moving on from Nao's dilemma, Judai, Shō and Misawa decided to do some background research on Ed Phoenix back at the Yellow Dorm to prepare him for his duel, while the others waited for the heiress to return.

Night had already fell on the island when Nao clutched onto her phone for any message from the Kaiser. The surreal moment when his life points hit zero was still very difficult to swallow. Both Cyber Twin Dragon and Cyber End Dragon did not stand a chance. She replayed the entire duel in her head over and over, until she realized a cold truth - Ed had been flawlessly playing around with Ryō to the last moment. His composure was indeed very tranquil and confident.

It frightened her.

That was not the end of it. Ed had stated on television that he was on his way to the Academy to settle a score with Judai - a battle of heroes against heroes. He credited that destiny had served him well. Now, the Pro Duelist would arrive here at any moment. Thinking that she had enough of grieving and concerning, she stepped out of the washroom in the main building into the dark and empty halls. Naturu Pineapple floated around her and Nao gave a weak smile at it.

"I'm sorry for worrying you, and everyone else." The pineapple shook its head in denial.

"I promise I'll be more careful. I'm okay right now, so you don't have to look out for me anymore today." Naturu Pineapple noticed the tiredness in her eyes through that smile, but it complied and disappeared back into its card.

Nao was just about to pass the closed card store by when she felt that she wasn't alone. A shiver ran up her spine as she carefully took her next few steps with the heels of her boots softly clicking the floor. Apart from her shoes, she could hear the faintness of another pair following the same rhythm. She stopped and so did they.

No student here would trail her like this.

At her fearful conclusion, she ran immediately to the nearest exit she could find. Even when she was finally outside in the dark night, the pursuer still chased after her. She tripped on her own two feet and fell onto the ground with her palms grazing the cement.

"Somebody!" Nao wheezed out through her tired breaths for any help. "Somebody help me!"

The stranger was about to catch her while still on the ground when they both heard a dark chuckle loud and clear. "Attempting an abduction of an innocent girl - that's the scum that exists among people everywhere."

"Who's there?" snarled the stranger and spotted a phantom-like figure outlined in the moonlight.

Nao could have sworn that she had seen a devil before her eyes.

"Why don't you repent for that crime of yours with a duel?" The stranger growled and turned on his duel disk. Nao backed away enough to be safe from any damage. She listened to the newcomer's voice as it got louder as she unknowingly shuffled closer to it, without daring to look behind her. Her mind begged for her to find her saviour, but her heart told her otherwise. With conflicting thoughts, she watched the kidnapper wither to his knees in terror of the devil. The explosion created by her saviour's monster made her cover her ears.

"I see you don't know when to give up. Your destiny has already been decided," he declared and commanded a final attack as the devil leapt up. A shriek penetrated through her hands and the criminal was silenced. She couldn't dare to move an inch when her saviour jumped from the top of one of the stone monuments and walked towards him from behind her and took out the deck from the holster. Ed Phoenix skimmed through the cards and frowned. "How could someone like you be carrying that card?"

With that he carelessly tossed it on top of the defeated criminal.

Nao let her ears free, and all of her fears and trembling gradually faded away. She warily stood up and gazed at his figure from behind. There was no doubt that it was indeed Ed Phoenix, but rather than being excited, there was intrigue but also slight intimidation emitting from him that she felt.

From the corner of her eye, she saw a foreign object glistening under the full moon on the ground. She slowly picked it up and identified it as a thin black and silver hair pin. There was some warmth lingering on it as she held it on her cold and slightly scratched palm.

"Are you hurt, Nao?"

When she heard him, she immediately hid the hairpin in her hand behind her back. Then she asked herself why she did so on a whim, as if she always had something to hide. She was about to lie that she wasn't but it then hit her that Ed knew her name. At first, she thought it was strange, but then again, she was well known as the Fukugawa Family's youngest daughter. Something in her mind told her that he didn't mean it that way.

"Have I," she stopped herself. The thought of meeting him before was itching her mind, but didn't feel that it was right to ask.

"No I'm not hurt, but thank you," she politely and hesitantly answered instead.


	5. The Shadow of Dread

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!GX except for Fukugawa Nao. All Naturia Synchro Monsters are changed to Ritual Monsters and Tuner Monsters are converted to regular Effect Monsters. Credits go to Takahashi Kazuki and Director Tsuji Hatsuki.

* * *

**Chapter 5**

**The Shadow of Dread**

Ed recalled his last conversation with Saiou before he departed for Duel Academia that night. He didn't like the idea of a rematch against Judai, but if it was fated, then there was no room other than obligation. He walked into the white room as his manager shuffled his tarot cards.

"Are you going?" he asked.

"As much as I'd like to, I can't afford to be taking detours. I'll go all over the world and find _him_ as soon as possible."

"You mustn't hurry, for the doors of destiny will always open," his pale violet orbs peered behind before laying out his cards on the glass table. "Ed, are you going to use those cards?"

"That is my intention. I will show Yuki Judai the true Heroes."

"You're saying that you don't approve of his pride as a fellow Hero user, I take it? In that case, I will look at the fighting spirit and future that dwell within your deck." Ed handed his prepared deck to Saiou as he held it for a few brief moments before giving it back.

"How is my destiny?"

"It would seem as though I didn't even need to foretell it."

"I will be back soon," Ed smirked and left the room. Saiou eyed on the Pro Duelist, who put his right hand in his pocket. He flipped over the card he laid out on the table - Temperance making its appearance once again only it is in reverse position.

"Reverse Temperance - instability, insecurity and loss," he said to himself, but this card did not refer to Ed, but rather the lost and strongly protected past of his. It puzzled him to why it reoccurred in his readings recently. "What is the role of this?"

Back in the current moment looking down at the unconscious criminal, he instinctively reached into his pocket and realized that it was empty. Nao read his actions and thought back to the hairpin she picked up. She took a wary step closer to him that made her heart pound in her chest.

"Is it this?" she meekly peered and held out the small object. He turned around to finally face her and eye on her open hand. He frowned but wordlessly took it from her to drop it back in his silver blazer pocket. He also fished out a black handkerchief and wrapped it around her scathed hand.

"There was no way you could fall like that without a scratch," he growled slightly. Nao felt some guilt in his words but didn't pay a heed to it. She held her hand against her chest after he finished.

"I'm sorry," she whispered.

"Rather than being apologetic, you should know better than to wander around late at night," he warned. Nao winced slightly, unable to give an explanation of her own. She thought that he would be a little more gentle like his hands as opposed to his words. She also noticed that he was using a familiar tone, which wasn't very ideal between two strangers, or so she thought.

"That hairpin - it must belong to someone dear to you," she uttered shyly, which made Ed's blue eyes soften just the slightest.

"Something like that," he looked away to gaze at the moon. There was a mysterious silence surrounding the two of them, but Nao timidly broke it.

"Does this person," she paused to choose her words carefully, "Remember you?" Ed turned to Nao's curious eyes, but the mixed to nothing of emotions prevented him from not answering her.

"Probably not."

"Nao!" Judai hollered out behind them, accompanied with Misawa and Shō. Temporary Principal Chronos and Vice Principal Napoleon also arrived. They stopped when they saw that she wasn't alone. "Ed Phoenix!"

"How did you come to the île?" asked Napoleon, using some French terms.

"Who's he?" Shō pointed at the unconscious stranger.

"Some scum that tried to kidnap a student here. You don't need to worry about him," Ed waved it off.

"How awful. He's completely still," Shō observed. "So that student he tried to kidnap…?" He gazed at Nao who looked slightly pale and weary.

"Judai, it's been a while, hasn't it?" Ed turned to the Osiris, ignoring the proper honorific as an underclassman. "Why don't we settle things?"

Napoleon asked the Pro Duelist to duel Judai with the Red Dorm at stake, but he offhandedly informed him that he needed to be a sponsor in order to do so, adding that Napoleon's salary would make it impossible. "I'll be waiting for you at the Duel Arena first thing in the morning. However, aside from your friends, we'll do this without an unnecessary gallery."

"No spectators?" Misawa inquired.

"To me, this is a duel that won't be anything special. A pro doesn't recklessly expose his skills."

"Fine then. As a duelist who uses a similar Hero deck, I can't afford to lose this duel, either. My Hero Deck is everything to me," Judai complied.

"It's everything to you?" Ed scoffed loudly, "Don't forget those words now, Judai." He left the scene with one last glance at Nao's bandaged hand, who caught his eye and hid it behind her back. Chronos and Napoleon chased after him for more negotiation and the remaining students still stuck around.

"Nao, are you okay?" Judai went up to her. She snapped out of her trance and said that she was fine, only tired from a long day. The other two couldn't agree more and they decided to head back to the Red Dorm to turn in. Nao hid her hand by crossing her arms to give the illusion that the night chill crept into her body. When they arrived back, Nao crept back into Manjōme's room and up the stairs where Asuka sat on her bed waiting.

"Nao, where were you?"

"I was still in the main building, but I'm fine right now. You don't have to worry anymore, Asuka," she assured and began to get ready for bed.

"Nao, you don't have to hide anything from me. We are friends, you know?"

"There isn't anything for me to hide. I am sure of it," she smiled.

"Are you sure?"

"Of course. I wouldn't lie to you."

Little did she know that Nao already did. She had many questions regarding Ed Phoenix and how he treated her differently from the others. The black handkerchief stayed around her hand and then she thought about the hairpin that belonged to the pro duelist. She wondered why he had it in his possession until she fell asleep. Throughout the night, the headaches ceased and she had no dreams.

Technicians set up the arena before the duel commenced and the only spectator was the group, along with Junko and Momoe at the other end of the room.

"It's starting," Asuka held her breath

"Big Bro's going to win this," Kenzan clenched his fist, referring to Judai.

"Oh, Ed you're so cool! Ed, turn this way," squealed Junko and Momoe.

"I just made eye contact with my Ed!" Momoe grinned.

"I just got winked at!" Junko sighed, but they turned against each other and argued that it was aimed at themselves.

"They're completely double-crossing us," Shō pouted.

"I'll go call them back here," Asuka abruptly stood up, but the boys immediately barred her from leaving.

"I feel that, if you go, you won't come back," Shō voiced out for himself and the boys. She cleared her throat and sat back down. Nao couldn't help but feel a tinge of jealousy pinching her, as she held the black cloth Ed gave her the night before in her hand. She replaced it with a proper bandaid before leaving the dorm this morning. She quickly hid it before anyone else caught her with it.

"We will now hold a duel between Yuki Judai and Ed Phoenix," Napoleon announced and the two duelists inserted their decks and began their duel. This duel was going to prove how much Judai improved from the first year until this moment, and he was determined to win against the pro duelist.

"Ed! Let's have a great duel - a battle of Heroes against Heroes!"

"We'll settle which of us is the true Hero user!"

As expected, both duelists used Elemental Heroes with nearly identical strategies to the point where it was a contest of which Fusion Monster was better. Judai started with Flame Wingman, which was defeated by Ed's Phoenix Guy - a variation of the fusion between Featherman and Burstlady. Judai managed to bring out Tempester to deal some damage, aware that Phoenix Guy was immune to battle destruction. The peak of the two fusion specialists consisted of Shining Phoenix Guy and Shining Flare Wingman, the latter successfully sending the former out of the game due to Light Eraser Equip Magic and Skyscraper Field Magic.

The first few turns of the duel brought Judai's spirits to a fever pitch, but Ed didn't seem to share his enthusiasm. Nao also realized that the pro duelist kept his professional composure just to set the difference between himself and the Osiris Student. Judai exclaimed a few moments later that he was having fun, "I've never seen an exciting scene like this before, where Heroes are duking it out with each other."

"Did you say 'fun'? Don't make me laugh, Judai," Ed snarled. "A fate in which heroes can't help but fight is never something enjoyable! Do you even understand the weight of the cross that a hero is burdened with, that suffering and hatred, Judai?"

For an unknown cause, Ed's argument dropped a saddening weight on Nao's mind. The cynical mind of his should be frightening to her, but there was a sense of sympathy within his voice that she couldn't quite put a finger on.

"They're the strength that supports a hero! A guy like you, using Heroes just because of their looks and because they're you favourites, makes me sick! In order to live, I need them - the true Heroes."

Ed felt as if his strength was increasing exponentially and his frustrations channelled into his cards and into the duel. "At this moment, the wheel of destiny has begun to spin! I activate a Trap: D-Time. When an Elemental Hero of mine leaves the field, this card is able to add D-Heroes with a total Level that's less than or equal to that Hero's Level from my deck to my hand."

"What are those?" Manjōme asked out loud.

"I haven't heard of Heroes like that," Kenzan said. Even Misawa, who had vast intellect, had no recollection.

"D-Hero," Nao muttered and the image of the devil from last night flashed before her eyes for a moment.

"Judai, you're unaware of the true power of the Elemental Heroes. The power of evolution that lies dormant within taking that form are the D-Series of Heroes - destiny, destroy, death. They're new heroes who are ahead of the E-Heroes in all of those regards. They are the D-Series."

When he mentioned the D-Series of Heroes, Nao suddenly had another chronic headache seep into her mind with grainy images passing through. She couldn't decrypt them but she saw what consisted of a demon, scattered cards and heavy rain. Without the heart to bring her hand to soothe the pain, she continued to watch the duel.

"I activate the Field Magic, Clocktower of Seclusion!" The urban skyscrapers suddenly crumbled into rubble and what seemed like a courtyard emerged from the ground. The clocktower stood behind Ed that read 6 o'clock. "This is a new battlefield where the D-Heroes will flourish. Now, turn, hands of fate! Engrave the hour of destiny!"

The clock suddenly moved backwards in time until both the minute and the hour hand reached 12, or midnight. Up on the top of the tower stood a familiar silhouette that Nao would never forget. The dark clouds cleared for the monster to appear.

"Come out, D-Hero Devil Guy!" Unlike Judai's and Ed's E-Heroes, his new monster seemed more like an antagonist or an anti-hero. "Go, Devil Guy!"

"Is he trying to take himself out? Shining Flare Wingman has 3700 attack points," Misawa gasped.

"No, this is not an attack," Nao realized.

"Devil Guy, activate your effect! Destiny Road!" He commanded his D-Hero, who struck his claw at Judai's hero - disappearing while leaving Light Eraser behind. "Begone, Shining Flare Wingman."

"Shining Flare Wingman is gone," Judai mumbled in disbelief.

"It's Devil Guy's effect, which, once each turn, blows an opposing monster off two turns into the future."

"You sent a monster to the future?"

"That's right. The power to manipulate the fate of the future is the D-Series of Heroes. You'd best prepare yourself, Judai. However, during a turn in which Devil Guy activates this effect, I'm unable to conduct battle. So I'll place one card face-down to end my turn."

Although Judai wasn't fazed by Ed's intimidation of the D-Heroes, he still plastered a grin on his face and continued the duel. Each turn that passed, the clock turned forward three hours, in which Ed described as Judai's countdown to defeat. The Osiris expressed at one point that the future was always undecided and something that each person needed to cut open.

As the duel progressed, Judai unknowing was lured into a predicament that became increasingly impregnable to break. Ed summoned two other D-Heroes, Diehard Guy and Diamond Guy, each with an ability to manipulate the future turns. Diehard was equipped with the Ring of Magnetism and D-Shield so that he wouldn't be destroyed in battle as well as being the only battle target Judai could only select. Even if the Ring of Magnetism unequipped, he would still be able to Special Summon monsters destroyed in battle.

Diamond Guy could control when his Magic Cards would be played, and he used it along with Devil Guy to toy around with Judai's helpless Shining Flare Wingman. The Magic Card, Misfortune, dealt half of Shining Flare Wingman's strength as damage to Judai's life points, and Ed used Diamond Guy's ability to use Magical Stone Excavation to return Misfortune back to his hand.

Nao honestly thought to herself that this duel was similar to how Ed dueled against the Kaiser - confident and flawless. If it was kept up, she wondered if Judai would fall into the same fate. There was a stirring feeling that she couldn't ignore, but when she hoped for only one moment that Ed would win, it felt right.

After the Clocktower of Seclusion reached twelve o'clock, there was a wavering aura surrounding the courtyard that would have meant something. Judai miraculously managed to land an attack, but it wasn't as successful as anyone hoped. Judai fused Wildman and Necrodarkman together to form Necroid Shaman while forcing Ed to summon his Featherman by sacrificing Diehard Guy. Judai could attack freely, but because the Clocktower of Seclusion reached midnight, all battle damage directed to him was reduced to zero.

The second time that Shining Flare Wingman returned to the field, Ed activated Misfortune but Judai canceled his hero's fusion to lose the target. Nao noticed that the Pro Duelist didn't faze at all, as if he was waiting for something to happen. Judai drew and subsequently activated his own Field Magic, Fusion Gate and the Clocktower of Seclusion became to crumble, but Ed's smirk remained.

"Judai, I was waiting for this moment. Because, when Clocktower of Seclusion is destroyed, a new D-Hero, one that has been imprisoned in it, will be released! Come forth, Dread Guy!" As soon as the clocktower broke apart at last, a large burly brawn with an iron mask leapt out and landed behind Ed. "When this card is summoned, it destroys all non-D-Hero monster on my field and I'm able to Special-Summon up to two D-Heroes that are in my Cemetery. Dread Guy is a D-Hero who has continued to be imprisoned in the Clocktower for a long time. It's abilities, which are sustained by its hatred, are in a different league compared to the other D-Heroes. I'll revive Devil Guy and Diehard Guy."

Ed's Featherman shattered into Solid Vision pixels by Dread Guy's ability as the two fallen D-Heroes replaced him. "Dread Guy's attack power become the combined strength of all D-Heroes on my field aside from Dread Guy!" With three other heroes on his field, Dread Guy's attack power became twenty eight hundred.

"But, that powerful effect of yours'll be your weakness! I activate Fusion Gate's effect! I'll fuse the Clayman and Sparkman on my field! I summon Thunder Giant!" Judai pressed onwards by attempting to eliminate Diamond Guy with Thunder Giant's ability, but Ed's Dread Guy negated it because it was the turn he was summoned.

"Your assessment was overly optimistic, Judai. You certainly are a duelist with good skills, however, you just can't defeat me! That's because you don't have something that I have!"

"Something I don't have?"

"A reason to long for the Heroes. I'll use the power of these D-Heroes to seek my revenge on the one who killed those precious to me," said Ed. "To be specific, the first is my deceased father. He was a Card Designer for the Industrial Illusions company, the one that has created Duel Monsters - a father I looked up to, who designed many great monsters."

Ed reflected out loud on the fateful night that he found his father laid lifelessly in their home with scattered cards that he designed and printed. "But, one day, my father was attacked by someone and lost his life."

"No way… wait, so then your father…?" Judai put the pieces together.

"That's right. The last cards that my father created were this D-Series of Heroes - the very power that my father gave to me! At one point, I also believed in the power of justice, just as you do. That's why I kept waiting for that criminal to be caught. And for all that, in the end, nothing at all came of it, much less the criminal getting caught. That's why I swore in my heart that I would become the hero who would find that criminal! That, if he wouldn't be brought to justice in the public world, then I'll use the power of the D-Heroes to bring him to justice for the last victim he killed!

"And, I became a Pro Duelist to take part in numerous battles across the world and locate him. The criminal who killed the closest people is the only one who holds a card that's the only one of its kind in the world. I won't let that criminal get away with it - no, all of those who commit evil with unconcern!"

"But still, using the Heroes that your father left behind for you as a tool for revenge?"

"Don't talk as if you understand, Judai," Ed snapped vengefully, "It makes me sick to see a guy like you using Heroes just because they're your favourites! I need them in order to defeat him: the true Heroes that give me power! If none of this will go through that scattered brain of yours, then tell all of this to the one sitting on your side - the last victim he killed: Fukugawa Nao!"

No one could breathe.

How could Nao be dead when she had just heard Ed's struggle?

Judai turned his head to Nao, as well as the rest of the group staring at her in disbelief.

The problem was that Nao was just as shocked as the others, to the point where tears threatened to fall.

"This is the end! Go, Dread Guy! Predator of Dreadnaught!" His strongest monster crushed Judai's Thunder Giant and the rest of his life points. As Ed left the arena in the middle of the revelation, he breathed out his last words, "Begone, you runt." The faintest shadow of Dread Guy layered on the pro duelist when he turned his back.

The Solid Vision faded away and Judai's deck burst out of his disk. He couldn't hear his friends calling his name as he collapsed under white light without another sound from Winged Kuribō.

The black handkerchief given to the heiress slipped from her hand to the floor, with all hope to pull herself together she thought she could muster.


	6. Holding On

A/N: Full body shot of Fukugawa Nao is now on display! I apologize in advance if the next chapter or two feel somewhat shorter than your preferences.

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!GX except for Fukugawa Nao. All Naturia Synchro Monsters are changed to Ritual Monsters and Tuner Monsters are converted to regular Effect Monsters. Credits go to Takahashi Kazuki and Director Tsuji Hatsuki.

* * *

**Chapter 6**

**Holding On**

There were more quiet moments than there had ever been in the Red Dorm a couple days past. After being defeated by Ed Phoenix, Judai had been unable to see his cards. It had happened when he and Manjōme conducted a skills test duel, and he drew his first card to realize it was plainly white. It was the same with the rest of his deck.

Visibly shaken and traumatic, Manjōme dragged him to the infirmary to find any causes. Asuka, Misawa and Kenzan came by with Shō literally pushed inside by other students. Professor Ayukawa could only determine that Judai was in shock and just take some time to rest.

Nao deeply hesitated to cross paths with Judai, thinking that it was her fault that Ed Phoenix acted very vengefully and angrily, even though she thought there was no connection between them. She turned the corner to the infirmary when the Osiris just left the room. Now that he has seen her, there was no escape to turn away.

"Judai," Nao trembled.

She noticed the distance in his eyes, preventing from being the Judai he once was. He gave a slight smile and ruffled her hair like an older brother to a younger sister.

"Don't sweat it, Nao. You did nothing wrong," was all he said and left with heavy shoulders.

She stayed rooted in her position, pondering over what he meant - whether it was her fault or whether she was avoiding him like a plague.

Even though no one spoke of Ed's revelation about Nao, it still itched in her mind.

Nao forced herself to cheer up and face her problems later when Fubuki and Temporary Principal Chronos attempted to take Asuka back to the Blue Dorm Idol Training Course, who adamantly refused. The two Tenjōin siblings dueled in the main arena with a full audience to decide on their future. Fubuki went over the top by changing into a much fancier attire for the duel and using a swan shaped platform for Asuka's arena entrance to emphasize that she was the Golden Egg in the Idol world.

Nao grimaced slightly when Fubuki was going to name their unit "Bucky and Asuryn," and Manjōme decided to be Asuka's only fan in the audience. She heaved a sigh of relief when Asuka smoothly bested her older brother, partially because she did not look forward to being the only girl in the Red Dorm.

It was only a little concerning and disappointed that Judai didn't join them to watch the duel at all. The group suddenly felt very empty and incomplete - not exactly feeling whole without Judai as the anchor.

The situation had gotten worse when Judai hadn't shown up to classes, and spent his time watching the waves roll in from the cliff near the Red Dorm. Manjōme had already talked to him but Judai didn't give much response to anything he said. The Osiris retreated back into his room and never came out since.

It may have been about three times that Nao stopped right in front of Judai's unresponsive room just to check up on him. Despite her honest intentions, she never had the courage to twist the knob and open the door to make sure he was still there. At around late afternoon to early evening, Nao decided to take a stroll in the woods just to sort out everything from the past few days, starting with Ryō's first loss in the Professional League.

Nao had never gotten any word from the graduate ever since that night, and his early career had been slowly moving downhill. She wouldn't admit it, but the Kaiser started to have a losing streak instead of a winning streak. Mimura would regularly send her highlights and future plans for the duelist, but they remained unwatched on her computer until eventually, she wouldn't open the emails at all.

The heiress took out her phone from her pocket, dialled Ryō's contact number with speed number, and held it to her left ear. Her heart began to race in her chest with each ring that passed, knowing that she had nothing to say or that she didn't know what to say. She could hold a professional conversation with her father without a hint of familiarity regarding about the company, but she palpitated with the thought of conducting a long distance phone call to someone who she held so dear.

The ringing stopped abruptly, and there was a long drone of silence through the receiver. Nao kept herself from hyperventilating, or let her lips quiver at the realization that Ryō had finally answered his phone.

"I know you don't have much to say," said a deep voice in her ear, "But even if you do, I want you to listen first."

One by one, tears dropped from her eyes and she silently wept as she obeyed him.

"Never will I blame you or your father for sponsoring me and watch my outcome like this. Never will I blame you for sending me into a world where I will also be victim to many defeats. But more importantly," he stopped and took a deep breath. "Never will I ever blame you for saving my life back then in order to face these hardships here and now."

Nao bit her lip much harder as she held back her voice from crying out loud.

"I knew this would eventually happen, but I still have time to make things right - for me, for your father, but also for you. As long as I still have yours and Shō's support, I won't be afraid. You've already done what you can to get me this far, Nao."

"But I didn't do anything to help you," she wavered, "I couldn't - not how I am right now."

"Nao?"

"I wasn't supposed to exist to live until today. I was supposed to be killed by someone just so that I wouldn't let this happen to you," she mindlessly choked through the phone, without bothering to hold back all the burdens she had been carrying.

"Do you have any idea what you're saying?"

"It's true. If I weren't here, then you wouldn't have to worry about someone who cares for you too. Judai would still be able to duel, and Ed Phoenix wouldn't have had to fight and defeat him to avenge for me. No one would have had to accept someone like me as their equal classmate."

"Nao," he pressed, but she couldn't stop to listen.

"Ryō, you don't have to work so hard; you don't have to do duel for me. Please just win!" she helplessly begged as her knees weakened and slid onto the ground while leaning against the tree. "I don't care what you believe, but if you keep this up then you'll only hurt yourself even more. So don't mind whatever you think will make me proud of you, just win if you need to!"

He listened to her frustrated sobs and eyed at his deck in his other hand. He had a minor league duel in a few hours when she called him. He didn't expect her to sound so confused and so broken, but instead of following her wishes, her angst only made his resolve even stronger. He wondered what exactly made her act this certain way, or to be specific, who did.

"Nao, all I ask of you is to be strong for yourself first. We have our own demons, and we should conquer them together, wherever we may be in the world or whatever they are. You've been supporting me, but let's support each other now.

"So please don't cry for your kind stranger, Nao," he requested, which freed more hot tears trailing down her wet cheeks to her knees. "I have another duel tonight. I'll still do my best for us."

Nao wiped, "I'll do my here best too."

"I know."

They ended their call, and she calmed herself down. Her thoughts trailed back to Ed Phoenix, the one who indirectly stated that Nao was killed by the criminal he was pursuing. She wondered what he meant, whether he meant it emotionally or whether there was something missing within herself that was killed - something that was precious to the pro duelist. The black handkerchief rested in her skirt pocket but she couldn't bring herself to hold it in her hand. Without another word, she headed back for dinner at the Red Dorm. As she was about to step outside the forest, she felt another pang of aching slam onto her head.

"Again?" she cursed.

Suddenly, she head footsteps behind her crunching against the grass. She whipped her head behind, but found no one standing nearby. She instantly and absentmindedly regretted doing so because the dizziness overtook her senses and her vision blurred and spun. She barely felt herself hit the ground until she completely lose consciousness.

From the shadows, a tall figure with bright pale violet eyes treaded towards the young girl. He knelt down on one knee beside her as his long navy locks draped his shoulders to his leaning torso. He kept a straight face when he reached his hand to her temple, but recoiled away when he felt something prick his long fingers.

"Spirits - she has the ability to see spirits," he observed. He couldn't see them, but he could see through them. Naturu Pineapple gave a threatening squeak but his pupils flashed brightly. The pineapple spirit shrieked as it disappeared from existence.

"This is not what I had intended to do, but all the more reason to keep her in the dark a little longer. This girl will no longer communicate with her spiritual partner - to be specific, she will not remember that she had the ability."

Saiou muttered to himself that she started to know too much that she was not supposed to, so her memories had to compensate for now. He moved her to a nearby tree to rest on and strolled back into the forest to wait for his true target tonight. Things were moving according to plan.

While on his private jet to the island, he read the daily fortune, which consisted the upright Wheel of Fate - unexpected result. He predicted that Judai would fall into his control, but there was something that prevented him from his claim. He inferred that he had to make another approach through those who interact with him.

The upright Fool represented Judai himself - a fool, patrol and hollow. The upright Hanged Man represented the man he was destined to meet. He eyed on the last card yet to be flipped over, but he decided against so. When he encountered the unstable and timid Fukugawa Nao, he suspected that the unrevealed card was reverse Temperance. He would have to deal with her later on when she would be much more worth of encountering.

Saiou Takuma was cunning that way.

Nao took in her mysterious surroundings - standing underneath a pillar of light on top of darkened water. Her sights beyond the light was dark and ominous for her to venture into. "What is this?" she wondered.

In her state, she didn't realize until a few moments later that she felt more alone than usual. She couldn't put a finger on what she meant, but it didn't feel like anyone had abandoned her. It felt more internal and personal that was missing as if something had erased a page of memories from her.

She looked above her and saw what looked like a wheel of some sort, looming over her small existence and a dark cackle that expanded the pillar of light surrounding her. The brightness increased until it was unbearable to keep her eyes opened to. She winced and gasped when it flashed too bright even through her closed orbs.

Nao's eyes snapped open to Asuka's and Shō's worried expression above her. "Nao! You're alright, are you?"

"Where am I?"

"The Red Dorm," Shō answered her. "You were slumped over at the edge of the forest near here last night."

"The forest?" she mumbled, but all she thought of was the bright light in her dream. She suddenly remembered, "Judai?"

Asuka and Shō uneasily looked at each other, "You see, we found you while we were searching for Big Bro last night."

"Searching for Judai? What do you mean?"

"He has been missing since yesterday evening. We were trying to find him, assuming he didn't leave the island," Asuka explained.

"Not only that, Manjōme hadn't returned back here either," Shō added.

"Manjōme?"

"Anyway, we're glad that you're alright, Nao. Can you stand up?" Asuka held her shoulders carefully. Nao nodded and held onto Asuka's helpful hand to get out of bed and slip on her boots.

"You must be starving because we didn't see you eat dinner last night. You should eat something before classes start today," Shō lightly suggested, seeing that the heiress looked a little peaky and led the two girls out of Manjōme's room to the cafeteria. They were met with Misawa and Kenzan, both sharing the same relief to see that Nao was safe and sound. When they slid the cafeteria door open, the first thing they saw was Manjōme's black hair, but there was something different about him.

"Manjōme, I worry about you so much. If even you disappear," Shō stopped to study him.

"What's wrong with you, Manjōme? That uniform…?" Misawa inquired to him.

Manjōme chuckled and turned to them with an ambitious smirk plastered on his face, and flaunted his new white uniform, shedding the black trench coat he once fashioned. "Saiou-sama is the controller of the world. Duel Academia will soon become white through the Society of Light."

As he preached his new discoveries, the remaining group looked on puzzled and slightly bewildered of his new allegiance - the Society of Light.


End file.
